 |
Class of 1983
Dear Class of 1983,
Welcome to class notes online!
Your class notes are published on a continual basis as we receive your news, and appear below in the order they were received, along with your CD/book art or photos.
(last updated 8.21.08)
Submit your own class note here.
You may also submit news, CDs, books, and photos by mail to:
Class Notes
New England Conservatory
290 Huntington Avenue
Boston MA 02115
You will also find information on this page about your Reunion contacts, and other information relevant to your class year.
Help us find your lost classmates.
Some recent news from the class of 1983. Your class note will remain on this page for up to one year, or until you submit a new note to replace it.
| Laurent Levy ’83 performed a Master’s piano recital, completing his M.A. in Jewish Music at Gratz College, near Philadelphia. Accompanied by oboist David Mankin ’80, the program included works of Russian and Israeli composers including Achron, Boskovich, Lavry, and Ben-Haim. 8/21/08 | |
| James Lafitte ’83 M.M. is the current Jazz Ensemble Director at Bryant University, located in Smithfield, R.I. 8/21/08 | |
 |
When pianist Zhu Xiao-Mei '83 M.M. was profiled in NEC's Notes magazine in 1996, she had been teaching at the Paris Conservatoire for just a few years. Her second CD, of Scarlatti sonatas, was introducing her to listeners beyond Europe, where she was already a well-traveled concert artist on the strength of her Goldberg Variations. Twelve years later, she has a shelf of recordings that supplements her beloved Baroque repertoire with the Schubert she learned to love from her NEC teacher, Gabriel Chodos. And she is a published author with leading French publisher Laffont. La Riviere et son secret (The River and Its Secret) recounts her chilling experiences during the Cultural Revolution in China, where at one time the touch of an old accordion in her reeducation camp was the closest she could come to a "decadent" piano keyboard. Read an excerpt (in French). 6/17/08 |
 |
Carol McKeen ’83 M.M. has been working in benefits consulting since 1983 and is now Vice President of Aon Consulting. She continues to sing, now mostly in choral groups, including a number of major Boston choral groups. Carol is active in the NEC Alumni Council and recently become the Vice President-elect. Carol also chairs NAAC, NEC’s Network of Alumni in Alternative Careers. She has been married to John Dunton since 2000; she has three step-children and four grandchildren. Carol and John love to sail, travel, attend musical events and Red Sox games. Photo: Carol McKeen at Reunion 2008. 4/18/08 |
 |
Edward A. “Ted” Shure ’83 and his wife of 19 years, Gina, announce the birth of their daughter Kathryn Grace. Edward is Artistic Director of Shure Studios, where he teaches piano, voice, and conducting. He also has earned the reputation as one of the top choral conductors in Northeast Ohio. Shure Studios was established to continue the legacy and work of his late father and teacher, Leonard Shure ’90 hon D.M., who is a former faculty member of NEC. Edward currently lives in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. 4/18/08 |
 |
Pianist Mihae Lee ’83 A.D. is currently an artist member with the Boston Chamber Music Society. 4/18/08 |
| Michael Ponella ’83 moved back to New York City after graduating NEC and has been playing lead trumpet with the Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra for the past 13 years. He had done previous lead trumpet and solo work for the United Nation Orchestra with Paquito D’Rivera, as well as with Slide Hampton and the Jazz Masters. He has also played on recordings and live performances for radio, television, and film with such musicians as Dizzy Gillespie and Maestro Anton Coppola. Michael is currently working on his own recording project. 4/18/08 | |
 |
In February and March 2008, Dave Douglas ’83 joined the SF Jazz Collective on a world tour. The group showcased pieces by Wayne Shorter ’07 Hon. D.M. 4/18/08 |
| Ellen Michaud Martins ’83 M.M. is the Brass Coordinator and teaches horn on the music faculty at UMass Lowell. She is a member of the contemporary music ensemble Alea III and performs frequently with the Boston Ballet Orchestra, the Cantata Singers Orchestra, and the Springfield Symphony Orchestra. In past years, Ellen has been a recitalist in Iraklion, Crete, as part of the International Contemporary Music Festival, and performed in contemporary music concerts in Athens and St. Petersburg. She can be heard in orchestral and chamber music recordings on the Koch International, CRI, Titanic, and Albany labels. This June, Ellen and her husband, David, will be celebrating their 29th wedding anniversary. They have two sons, Adrian, a Junior Legal Studies major at UMass Amherst Honors College, and Anthony, a high school Junior who is a budding musician. Currently, the whole family is owned by two long-haired mini dachshunds, Noodle and Abby. 4/18/08 | |
 |
Bruce D. McClung ’83 authored Lady in the Dark: Biography of a Musical, which explores the mystique of this 1941 Broadway collaboration between composer Kurt Weill, lyricist Ira Gershwin, playwright Moss Hart, and Hart's Feudian psychiatrist—at whose behest this song-and-dance exploration of psychoanalysis was written. The book was published by Oxford University Press in 2006 and received the 2006 Special Jury Prize from the Theatre Library Association's George Freedley Memorial Awards, as well as the 2007 Kurt Weill Prize. Bruce now lives in Cincinnati, Ohio. 4/18/08 |
 |
Oxford University Press published Angela Myles Beeching's '83 M.M. book, Beyond Talent: Creating a Successful Career in Music in 2005. Angela teaches the Professional Artist Seminars at NEC and is Director of Career Services. The Career Services Center, which is available to NEC students and alumni, offers individual career advising (in-person, and by phone and email) Bridge: Worldwide Music Connection, a comprehensive online database of musicians' opportunities, as well as career informational handouts and workshops. 1/31/08 |
| Paul Marotta ’83 M.M. recently took a position at Philadelphia radio station WHYY as Executive Director of Public Information. Paul had previously worked at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center, and was National Senior Publicist for documentaries at WGBH/Nova and HBO. He is excited to return to public broadcasting. Paul now lives in Cherry Hill, N.J. 1/13/08 | |
Joe Link ’83 now lives in Washington, D.C., where he works at the Patricia M. Sitar Center for the Arts, an after-school arts center. The program is focused on working with kids at risk and families in the area. Joe is the music director and teaches theory. He also works with bands and a percussion ensemble. A percussionist, he also continues to freelance with different bands. 1/13/08 |
|
 |
Jacqueline Schwab ’83 performed a solo piano concert at the Cranberry Coast Concert Series in Cape Cod, Mass. She played her arrangements of vintage American and Celtic traditional music. This fall, she can be heard on Ken Burns’ series on World War II performing works by Elgar, Pärt, and William Walton, plus a number of American standards. She currently lives in Lexington, Mass. 1/13/08 |
 |
Mary Setrakian ’83 M.M. has been teaching and performing in Italy and Los Angeles, as well as in New York, where she now lives. She is currently involved in performing on Broadway as a musician and actress, and she has released an album of popular songs and jazz standards, All I Know. 11/20/07 |
 |
Ricky Ford ’83 hosted a workshop in Toucy, France in August of 2006 – he and his sextet concluded the weeklong series with a concert in Toucy Centre Ville. He has completed a six-year appointment as a faculty member of the Istanbul Bilgi University Music Department. Ricky has also released a CD, Green Note, on Marge Records. 7/3/07 |
Help us find your lost classmates.
Unfortunately, NEC has lost touch with some of your classmates. If you have e-mail or other contact information for any of the people listed below, please let us know so that we can keep them informed of reunions and other NEC activities.
Paul Cortese, Rachel Hersey, Hae-Kyung Jun, Soo Kim, Shannon Peet, Mary Schmidt, Yu-Qing Yan.